Images

Polling, public perception and the peoples court.

Are politicians interested in popularity because they 

want to help their constituents? Was Jesus really interested 

in the public perception? "And it came to pass, as he was 

alone praying, his disciples were with him: and he asked them, 

saying, Whom say the people that I am?" Luke 9:18

How we see ourselves. - Identity

Be not righteous over much; neither make thyself over wise: 

why shouldest thou destroy thyself? Ecclesiastes 7:16

Because of the kindness that God has shown me, I ask you not 

to think of yourselves more highly than you should. Instead, 

your thoughts should lead you to use good judgment based on 

what God has given each of you as believers. Romans 12:3

And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves 

before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is 

highly esteemed among men is abomination 

in the sight of God. Luke 16:15

All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; 

but the LORD weigheth the spirits Proverbs 16:2

For not he that commendeth himself is approved, 

but whom the Lord commendeth. 2 Corinthians 10:18

How we see others. - Comparative studies

For example, two men come to your worship service. One man is 

wearing gold rings and fine clothes; the other man, who is poor, 

is wearing shabby clothes. Suppose you give special attention 

to the man wearing fine clothes and say to him, "Please have a 

seat." But you say to the poor man, "Stand over there," or "Sit 

on the floor at my feet." Aren't you discriminating against 

people and using a corrupt standard to make judgments? James 2:2

How others see us. - The Peoples Court?

But the LORD said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, 

or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: 

for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on 

the outward appearance, but the LORD 

looketh on the heart. 1 Samuel 16:7

Talk no more so exceeding proudly; let not arrogancy 

come out of your mouth: for the LORD is a God of knowledge, 

and by him actions are weighed. 1 Samuel 2:3

The Final Verdict

For God shall bring every work into judgment, 

with every secret thing, whether it be good, 

or whether it be evil. Ecclesiastes 12:14

PS: I will miss my friend Mrs Doubtfire

"Help is on the way dear!"

SIN

UNFULFILLED? - does sin really matter?

going off the path? - hamartano

not going far enough? - hustereo

going beyond where you should stop? - parabasis

catharsis means purification; 

akatharsia is pollution. 

It means being made dirty.

THE SOLUTION

Game

its not a game

. . . anyway, these are the rules:

PLEASE ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS

where did you come from?

where are you?

why are you here?

where are you going?

so, I guess by now you have noticed that you have it

you may or may not have figured out what it is but you have life!

you have only one basic freedom

that is, to choose, every time what you will believe.

everyone starts by being "given" some beliefs.

usually by a parent. some get a little other get a lot.

like the one and two and five talent story told by Jesus.

no one gets the "full picture" we ALL have to find the

pieces of the puzzle in order to get the big picture.

IN THE BEGINNING - GOD

some people get the first question answered pretty quickly.

"For the invisible things of him from the creation

of the world are clearly seen, being understood

by the things that are made." Romans 1:19

not rocket science right?

like most kids I couldn't help noticing the sky - it was everywhere!

so I guess I must have asked about it. I don't remember if I asked

first or parents told me that God made it. I was not born a skeptic

so I must have CHOSE to exercise my one basic freedom at an early age.

then I grew older and went to school and was told about science

they told me that science meant to know. and that I could "know stuff"

by observation

THE QUESTIONS begin when we see the physical world around us.

someone pointed me to the bible

you may not be able to figure it out

but the answers are ALL there.

Humbled

EXCELLENCE and

"The peril of perfection".

THE MAC DAVIS PROBLEM: "Lord it's so hard to be humble when we are 'perfect' in so many ways". 

OR Why some Baptists are 

wary of "Osteenism".

Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: (Philippians 2:5 KJV)

SO . . . is humility " a sign 

of weak character?"

To be humble is to accept one's fundamental lowliness and powerlessness, one's inadequacy and dependency, and the fact of one's ultimate origins in the earth, the humus. From dust we came, and to dust we shall return . . . but

NOT IN THE AGE OF

"The American Idol"! . . .

according 

to Wilfred M. McClay:

the mighty god of "self-esteem" has been elevated to power and permitted to reign unchallenged.

There is obvious value in courage,

confidence, dignity and self-esteem

are prime character attributes 

that are encouraged for success

in the world. Then we hear of the virtue of humility but what value is there in humility?

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up. (James 4:10 KJV)

For whosoever exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted. (Luke 14:11 KJV)

For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith. (Romans 12:3 KJV)

For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. (Galatians 6:3 KJV)

Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets. (Luke 6:26 KJV)

Notice what St Paul mentions twice:

And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. (2 Corinthians 12:7 KJV)

Let us, Seeing Death as the ultimate humiliation, pray like David in Psalm 90:12 "Teach us to number our days" & to apply ourselves wisely.

Sent from my iPhone

Gates and Buffett

I've always admired Gates

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Business_@_the_Speed_of_Thought_(book_cover).jpg

HUMAN NATURE:

"It doesn't matter if you have a perfect product, production plan, and marketing pitch; you'll still need the right people to lead and implement those plans." - GATES

BUFFETT : "buys great businesses run by wonderful managers and then gets out of the way."

http://bit.ly/1mcKtVc

war or sport

A PERSECUTION COMPLEX

"I am aware, it  is a thing of which many know nothing.  Talk to them about it, and they are ready to set you down as a madman, an enthusiast, or a fool." - J.C. Ryle asked back in the 19th century 

"are you fighting?"  http://bit.ly/1qTNZtI

Is The bible a study 

in human struggle?

Time after time from Genesis onward there seems to be a steady stream of stories depicting human conflict. Saint Paul  stated: "we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now." Romans 8:22

. . . so, what is the true  NATURE OF CONFLICT and where did 'the peace 

and harmony go?

. . . more fun and games? Is this just 'normal' COMPETITIVENESS  or the real shadow of wars? > "The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law". Luke 12:53 

more from Ryle :

"there is another warfare of far greater importance than any war that was ever waged by man.  It is a warfare which concerns not two or three nations only, but every Christian man and woman born into the world.  The warfare I speak of is the spiritual warfare.  It is the fight which every one who would be saved must fight about his soul." 

Does all conflict involve deception?

. . . "Be not deceived"; Chuck Mcknight commenting on Galatians 6:7-8 says concerning SOWING TO THE FLESH that some people

"Even if not committing blatant acts of sin, they live in a state of apathy, not seeking the Spirit's leading to produce in them good works. "

http://bit.ly/W8n1n2

so, AM I FIGHTING THIS FIGHT?

"it is as real and true as any war the world has ever seen.  It has its hand-to-hand conflicts and its wounds.  It has his watchings and fatigues.  It has its sieges and assaults.  It has its victories and its defeats.  Above all, it has consequences which are awful".

SAINT PAUL: from 2 Corinthians 11

"In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren; 27In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness."

SO, is this still true ?

. . . all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. 

 2 Timothy 3

What some "unbelievers" say:

they 'feel persecuted or "oppressed" whenever they find someone that doesn't share their particular worldview" http://bit.ly/W8t5w3

Was this just for the 

disciples back then?

"The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. "  St John 15 

He was born July 17, 1674

Isaac Watts was asking 

"Am I a Soldier of the Cross?"

His father was not a member of the state church, and was twice thrown into jail for opposing it, so that when he was a baby his mother often carried him in her arms to visit his father in prison.

http://bit.ly/1y9uvDF

This is what he said in poetry:

Am I a soldier of the cross,

   A follower of the Lamb?

And shall I fear to own His cause

   Or blush to speak His name?

Must I be carried to the skies

   On flowery beds of ease?

While others fought to win the prize,

   And sailed through bloody seas?

Are there no foes for me to face?

   Must I not stem the flood?

Is this vile world a friend to grace,

   To help me on to God?

Sure I must fight, if I would reign

   Increase my courage, Lord!

I'll bear the toil, endure the pain,

   Supported by Thy word.

Thy saints, in all this glorious war,

   Shall conquer, though they die;

They view the triumph from afar,

   And seize it with their eye.

When that illustrious day shall rise,

   And all Thy armies shine

In robes of victory through the skies,

   The glory shall be Thine.

_______________

Are You Fighting? 

J. C. Ryle

(1816-1900)

PS

	Paul Chappell (@PaulChappell)
7/12/14, 5:14 PM "What our Lord said about cross-bearing and obedience is not in fine type. It is in bold print on the face of the contract."

Weak

Adrift - going with the flow . . .

Disengaged? 

I had stopped pedaling my bike.

I was enjoying the breeze and the sunshine of the countryside. It was a great evening to be out for a ride. I had been on a gentle downward slope. As I looked ahead I realized why I had began to slow down.

I had come to the bottom of the slope and now the road began to rise. It was not a big hill but looking out in the distance I knew it was time to start pedaling again or I would come to a complete stop.

I become weak when I stop

EXERCISING my will. 

Everyday I must deliberately

and consciously choose to obey God in at least one command from the bible. The Psalms are filled with verses that have the phrase "I WILL".

Would you make a choice to

"exercise your will in obedience to God by finding the "I wills" in the psalms and practice them.

You will be stronger for it . . .

and there is a hill coming up ahead.

"BY REASON OF USE" Heb 5:14

Sent from my iPhone

we_watched_fed_up

I'M NOT INTO MONSTERS ERIK but PRAYER. . .

I just really liked this movie. It was a great escape from a crummy day.

http://www.redstate.com/2014/05/16/go-see-godzilla/

 There was a lot of clapping and cheering in the theater. The movie was NOT filled with F bombs or blood, guts, and gore. There was just some intense fighting by monsters and helpless humans...

http://www.redstate.com/2014/05/22/a-small-prayer-request/

Purpose-Driven

 24 SIGNS THAT YOUR CHURCH IS GOING PURPOSE DRIVEN
1. Change in music to a contemporary rock style.
 2. Removal of hymn books; eliminating the choir.
 3. Replacement of organ and piano with heavy metal instruments.
 4. Repetitive singing of praise lyrics.
 5. Dressing down to casual and informal attire.
 6. Eliminating of business meetings, church committees, council of elders, board of deacons, etc.
 7. The pastor, or a new leader with a few assistants, usually four, takes charge of all church business.
 8. A repetitive 40-day Purpose Driven Church study program stressing psychological relationships with each other, the community, or the world, begins.
 9. Funded budgeted programs are abandoned, or ignored, with ambiguous financial reports made.
 10. Sunday morning, evening, and/or Wednesday prayer meetings are changed to other times; some may even be eliminated.
 11. Sunday School teachers are moved to different classes, or replaced by new teachers more sympathetic with the changes being implemented.
 12. The name “Sunday School” is dropped and classes are given new names.
 13. Crosses and other traditional Christian symbols may be moved from both the inside and outside of the church building. The pulpit may also be removed.
 14. In accordance with Rick Warren’s instructions, new version Bibles are used; or only verses flashed on a screen are referenced during regular services.
15. Purpose Driven Church films, purchased from Saddleback, precede or are used during regular services. 16. The decor, including the carpets, may be changed to eliminate any resemblance to the former church.
17. The word “church” is often taken from the name of the church, and the church may be called a “campus.” Denominational names may also be removed.
18. An emphasis on more fun and party sessions for the youth.
19. Elimination of altar calls or salvation invitations at the close of the services.
20. The elimination of such words as “unsaved,” “lost,” “sin,” “Hell,” “Heaven,” and other Gospel verities from the pastor’s messages.
21. The reclassification of the saved and lost to the “churched” and “unchurched.”
22. The marginalizing, or ostracizing, of all who are not avid promoters of the new Purpose Driven Program. 23. Closed meetings between the pastor or chosen staff members without any reports made to the general membership.
24. Open hostility to members who do not openly embrace the new program, or who may have left for another church.

Love

My testimony today is like George’s:

I have the im­press­ion of this coming to me by

some in­ward voice ra­ther than of work­ing it out my­self . . .

coming like a day­spring from on high.

Words: George Matheson

O Love that will not let me go,
I rest my weary soul in thee;
I give thee back the life I owe,
That in thine ocean depths its flow
May richer, fuller be.

O light that followest all my way,
I yield my flickering torch to thee;
My heart restores its borrowed ray,
That in thy sunshine’s blaze its day
May brighter, fairer be.

O Joy that seekest me through pain,
I cannot close my heart to thee;
I trace the rainbow through the rain,
And feel the promise is not vain,
That morn shall tearless be.

O Cross that liftest up my head,
I dare not ask to fly from thee;
I lay in dust life’s glory dead,
And from the ground there blossoms red
Life that shall endless be.

 

Matheson said about this hymn:

My hymn was com­posed in the manse of In­ne­lan [Ar­gyle­shire, Scot­land] on the ev­en­ing of the 6th of June, 1882, when I was 40 years of age. I was alone in the manse at that time. It was the night of my sister’s mar­ri­age, and the rest of the fam­i­ly were stay­ing over­night in Glas­gow. Some­thing hap­pened to me, which was known only to my­self, and which caused me the most se­vere men­tal suf­fer­ing. The hymn was the fruit of that suf­fer­ing. It was the quick­est bit of work I ever did in my life. I had the im­press­ion of hav­ing it dic­tat­ed to me by some in­ward voice ra­ther than of work­ing it out my­self. I am quite sure that the whole work was com­plet­ed in five min­utes, and equal­ly sure that it ne­ver re­ceived at my hands any re­touch­ing or cor­rect­ion. I have no na­tur­al gift of rhy­thm. All the other vers­es I have ever writ­ten are man­u­fact­ured ar­ti­cles; this came like a day­spring from on high.

deeper

A deeper conversation

Who are we? Our identity is always to be defined by our relation to God, not our current or past behavior. We are children of God and servants of God. We are sinners and we are saints. We are made in the image of God and find our satisfaction only in knowing God. We are disciples of Christ. Never are we to allow our idols, lusts, or false gods to define us. Our counsel to those struggling with sexual orientation, or for that matter, with alcohol, drugs, theft, gluttony, or consumerism is this: don’t ever let sin define who you are. I may have stolen. But I am not a thief. By grace, by adoption in Christ Jesus, I am a child of God. That is my true identity. - Terry Johnson    

Whoever is a believer in Christ is a new creation. The old way of living has disappeared. A new way of living has come into existence. God has done all this. He has restored our relationship with him through Christ, and has given us this ministry of restoring relationships  - Saint Paul

God sent me to a [fill in] church to repent, heal, learn and thrive. The pastor there did not farm me out to a para-church ministry “specializing” in “broken(gay/addicted/etc) people.” . . . I needed (and need) faithful shepherding, not the glitz and glamor that has captured the soul of modern evangelical culture. I had to lean and lean hard on the full weight of scripture, on the fullness of the word of God, and I’m grateful that when I heard the Lord’s call on my life, and I wanted to hedge my bets, keep my girlfriend and add a little God to my life, I had a pastor and friends in the Lord who asked nothing less of me than that I die to myself. Biblical orthodoxy can offer real compassion, because in our struggle against sin, we cannot undermine God’s power to change lives. - Butterfield

pride

"How you have fallen from heaven, O star of the morning, son of the dawn! You have been cut down to the earth, You who have weakened the nations! "But you said in your heart, 'I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God, And I will sit on the mount of assembly In the recesses of the north. 'I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.'…

Isaiah 14:13-14

You have been deceived by your own pride because you live in a rock fortress and make your home high in the mountains. 'Who can ever reach us way up here?' you ask boastfully. Obadiah 1:3

GETTING /Taking THE CREDIT . . .

the tendency of human male 

ego is to independence,

the "I-did-it-my-way"

syndrome sometimes

stated as "If it's

going to be it has

to be me".

For the homo sapien

male any kind of 

dependence is

"anathema".

this is the essence of pride

that signals a mans downfall.

My first step to humility:

I must STOP TAKING CREDIT

"MY" ACCOMPLISHMENTS ...

the next step:

recognise that I CANNOT

take credit for ANYTHING ever!

"for thine is the Kingdom

and the Power and the Glory

forever, Amen.

At the same time came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And Jesus called a little child unto him, and set him in the midst of them, And said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:1-4

learn

does my life portray the 

things I profess to believe? 

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, 

for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will 

find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29). 

All I do should be based on a perfect oneness 

with Him, not on a self-willed determination 

to be godly. - CHAMBERS

Seriously

seriously ?

ENTERTAINMENT vs EDIFICATION 

Snoopy is a fictional character in the long-running comic strip Peanuts, by Charles M. Schulz. He is Charlie Brown's pet dog.  

ENOCH on the other hand is given as an example, to encourage . . .

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. (Hebrews 11:5 KJV)

But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. (Jude 1:20, 21 KJV)

Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do. (1 Thessalonians 5:11 

KJV)

All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not. (1 Corinthians 10:23 KJV)

But when he had turned about and looked on his disciples, he rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men. (Mark 8:33 KJV)

It is always possible in our 

ENTERTAINMENT - DRIVEN

culture, to lose sight of the command to edify and "build-up" each other.

We feel sometimes an overwhelming need "make light of" or "poke fun at" we joke about things. I was recently thinking about the place of 'humor' in the Christian life after looking over some writings by Neil Postman on "AMUSING OURSELVES TO DEATH". 

As far as the bible is concerned it seems as if it all comes down to the choice between FRIVOLITY and FERVENCY, the latter being the biblical approach. I would be the last person to "cast a stone" in this. So forgive me if the tone is a little sanctimonious. Maybe I should just "lighten up" and forget the whole thing. 

WATCHFUL

FERVENT

SOBER

VIGILANT

wrong

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